"I didn't set her up," she smiled. "I simply mentioned your name and she was curious as to where you were." Nick gave a lop-sided grin, knowing she wasn't telling everything. "Okay, I may have also told her you were enamored by her performance and that a girl like her may just be what the doctor ordered for your heartache."

"Leighanne, I'm fine."

"No, you're not. I know you cared about her. I know it got ugly sometimes. You can't go through a year with someone and not feel a little something."

"I'm not saying I don't. I'm just implying that I'm better off without her. I don't need that shit."

"I understand, Nick. Hey, I hear you're getting together with Toria tomorrow."

"Yeah, she's nice to talk with. I actually..." he stopped speaking, not sure if he should continue. "I cried in front of her. I yelled and got angry. It felt good to get that out."

"What are you trying to say, Nick?" she smiled.

"Thanks for talking with her."

"Nick, it'll be a quiet night for ya." Brian came walking out of the room. "AJ passed out almost as soon as I got him in there. Just keep an eye on him. If her starts coughin' or chokin', get him to the bathroom."

"Gotcha, B. Thanks for leaving me with the lush. Night guys." Nick walked back into his room, seeing AJ sit up. Nick jumped back. "Christ, Bone, Brian said you passed out!"

"I just did that so he'd leave," he giggled. "What was the nookie cookie like?"

"There was no nookie cookie, Bone."

"Come on, you can *hiccup* tell me."

"Just get some sleep. I'll tell you all about it in the morning," Nick lied, hoping it would get AJ to shut up.

"I understand, don't wanna talk about it with others around. Shhh, you guys, Nick wants his sleep. Nookie wears you out," he whispered into the air. Nick turned around and gave him the oddest look ever, heading to bed before AJ could do something even stranger.

The next morning, Nick woke up refreshed, feeling like a new beginning was about to start. He lay in bed, thinking about the previous evening. He thought about the way that Toria carried herself, how she seemed so strong willed. The girl had manipulated her way into making him release the anger he never wanted anyone to see. The more he thought about it, the more it turned him on. The other girls he had dated constantly followed him, longing for his approval of everything. That was every girl except Mandy. She didn't seem to care either way about things and did what she wanted, not thinking how it would affect him and others. Toria seemed different, though. She was her own person and did what she wanted, but made sure that no one would be hurt. She made him admit his feelings because it was something that needed to be done. He was just too stubborn to admit it. Maybe this girl was promising. Maybe she was the female confidant he'd been looking for. There was only one way to find out and that was to take a chance. That was exactly what he was going to be doing today. It'd been a while since he'd been out on a 'date' and he was hoping he wouldn't screw it up.

"AHHHHH!!!!"

"Morning, AJ," Nick giggled.

"What the fuck ran over me?"

"Tough night?"

"What the fuck ran over me?" he repeated.

"From the looks of you last night, you definitely had one too many. You were obsessed with the words nookie and cookie."

"Huh? Oh man, I hope I didn't do anything really stupid."

"I wouldn't know. I wasn't at the bar."

"I remember that much. Holy shit, my head hurts." Just then, the phone rang. "Make it stop, make it stop!"

Nick snickered, letting it ring a few more times. "It serves you right. Maybe it'll teach you not to touch that shit." He turned and answered the phone. "Hello?"

"Mister Carter?"

"George, is that you?"

"Yes, it is. It seems we've had a problem at the gated community."